From soccer to footy: NTFA code-hopper hits ground running for George Town

James Hawes, who played National Premier Leagues Tasmania soccer for Launceston City last year, has appeared in the Saints' best in three of the first four matches this season.

He was named their best player against Bridgenorth in round three.

Coach Dave Marshall said Hawes had been playing on the ball and "his ability to adapt is exceptional".

It's meanwhile been a fun ride for the 20-year-old who has been readjusting to the oval-shaped ball after focusing on soccer the past seven years.

"I didn't really expect it to be this intense," he said referring to the physicality and quality of the competition.

It's no secret Hawes has jumped into arguably the most competitive NTFA premier season in years given the recent influx of State League players.

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of Hawes' story is that he has switched from a top-tier soccer competition to a high-level footy one.

As he highlighted, often when people change sports they take a more relaxed approach to their new one.

But from talking to him, it's obvious footy hasn't come out of nowhere.

He said his dad Jason, who also played footy with George Town among other NTFA clubs, is a footy tragic and they'd long enjoyed kick-to-kick.

Hawes said he also played school footy for Brooks High School and had rarely missed an AFL game at UTAS Stadium.

But soccer won out when he was 13.

He explained he was playing both sports until that age and then made the choice to pursue soccer.

He spent his teenage years playing with North Launceston Eagles, Northern Rangers and then Launceston City.

So how did the electrical apprentice end up at George Town?

He said he decided to switch to footy after his good mate Coby Chugg asked if he was interested.

They used to play junior footy for North Launceston with Coby's dad Dale as the coach.

The Chuggs have also been among the Saints' big additions this season after switching from the Bombers with Coby playing and Dale as an assistant to Marshall.

Hawes said the question came at a time when he was exploring his options after losing his spot in Launceston City's senior team.

The soccer central midfielder said he did pre-season training at NPL club Launceston United as well as George Town before coming to his final decision.

Location also came into the equation as he lives at Pipers River which is a 17-minute drive from George Town.

Hawes said in an ideal world he'd love to be playing both sports.

"It's technically not possible, I would like to but you've got to make your mind up, it's too much on yourself and your body," he said.

The keen athlete said former Launceston City best and fairest Charlie Dyer was another who had made the switch to the NTFA in recent years.

He has played four matches in South Launceston's reserves this season.

So how the latest NTFA code-hopper managed to hit the ground running?

Hawes explained he had come from an environment where he was training three to four nights a week and maintained a high fitness level.

"Playing in the centre of the park in soccer you're constantly on the move," he said.

"So then carrying that over to footy and getting from contest to contest to get your hands on the footy or make a tackle - I think it's probably put me at an advantage really.

"Because the trainings are definitely a lot different as in, (footy's) more ball work throughout the year but in soccer it's a lot of running throughout the whole year."

It's this fitness that has allowed him to jump straight into the midfield, but what of getting used to tackling?

"I've always enjoyed the physical side of soccer as in the hard tackles and the slide tackles," he said.

"So coming back to footy, it did take a while to get used to tackling again and also being tackled.

"I think a lot of that (adjusting) came in with my training at soccer, even just the work in the gym.

"I feel like getting my body right to take the hits and also give out the hits has definitely given me an upper hand."

Hawes said ruck Coby, who is helping with midfield coaching, had taken him under his wing and "given me heaps of pointers with how to read the game better and he's definitely fast-tracked what's going on".

Asked about some of Australia's prominent code-hoppers, he spoke of former Greater Western Sydney footballer turned Australian Test wicket-keeper Alex Carey.

"That's a pretty cool story that he was able to go to the top level and play AFL and then jump over midway and go play for Australia," he said.

"That's pretty inspiring."

The Saints have registered one win and three losses with a 35-point victory against Deloraine in round one.

Last weekend, they lost to Hillwood by 61 points in the inaugural Gary Crane/Rod Green Shield match. Captain Darcy Layh was awarded the medal as the Saints' best player.

George Town play Longford at Blue Gum Park at 2.30pm on Saturday in round five.